Many individuals classify as the prosperous or unfortunate, and the differentiation amongst the two groups continue to expand yearly; this categorization is known as income inequality. The sociological perspective, more so the structural functionalism, also identified as functionalism, can be used to further examine income inequality. Structural functionalism was introduced by Talcott Parsons, and it accentuates that efficient healthcare and excellent wellbeing are two fundamental factors for a human being to function well. Each person’s health helps the society function because when multiple individuals are unhealthy, the society is at risk imbalance.…
Inequality can be defined as a Disproportionate share of recourses throughout society, including wealth, education and in some countries health care.…
“Inequality refers to the unequal distribution of valued social resources within a society or between societies.“ (Blakeley et al., 2012, page 24) These resources can either be money, time, education or different cultural backgrounds.…
Social inequality is the lack of equality in our society. We have many different social…
One argument made by Structural Functionalists is that society should be a meritocracy. People should be rewarded based on their abilities. (Class notes, SOCI 201, Winter 2010)…
Outline the three theoretical approaches discussed in the text. What image is held of each? What core questions does each approach ask? Which of the three approaches strikes you as the most useful? Why?…
Social inequality occurs when people in a society do not have equal rights or social status. Social Inequality can also be when people take their ideas and power to make a group seem more inferior to another group. Examples of this could be when women and African Americans did not have the right to vote. Many rights activist cover most of the topics of social inequality. Equal rights, whether in the work place, to vote, or even education or healthcare, are all topics of inequalities. Minorities are highly affected by this and have been throughout time. They had to fight for the right to vote, to have equalemployment, and even equal education. Social inequality is basically just a form of racism towards groups of people. In…
Functionalists also believe that poverty and ill health are important factors in society. They believe that inequality is not only inevitable but…
Functionalists held a positive attitude towards social classes (also called social stratification). Talcott Parson, one of the famous functionalists, argued that the emergence of different social classes is both inevitable and functional. The social stratification is thought to stem from the common values. Once common values exist, dissimilar individuals will be evaluated by shared values and thereby forming their own value consensus, which is the agreement of their group identity, resulting in the ranked social classes (Haralambos, Holborn, 2004:4). Durkheim, recognised as the funder of Functionalism, claims that the relationship among diverse social classes is cooperated and interdependence. Integrating together, these social groups perform different functions to prevent society from breaking down, which makes stratification functional to promote social stability (Parsons, 2009:7).…
Conflict theory is a paradigm that sees social conflict as the basis of society and social change, and emphasizes a materialist view of society, a critical view of the status quo, and a dynamic model of historical change (Ferris and Stein 22). The Conflict paradigm describes the inequalities that exist in all societies around the globe. Conflict is particularly interested in the following inequalities race or ethnicity, sex or gender, age, religion, ability or disability, etc. Every society is plagued by inequality based on social differences among the dominant group and all of the other groups in society, according to the Conflict paradigm. When sociologists analyze elements of society from this perspective, they look at the structures of wealth, power, and status and the ways in which those structures…
Racial inequality evaluated through the functionalist theory would be looked at to provide a function to the working system of a society. One function for racial inequality could be that the inferior race, prefers or needs direction by the dominant race. This was a common view in the enslavement of blacks in the south before the civil war. Another functionalist view might try to explain that the inferior race is in fact dangerous to mix with the dealing of the dominant race. This is an excuse for redlining, a process in which mortgage companies and banks outline neighborhoods that are black dominant. These red outlines were areas that were denied mortgages and loans, although most protagonist of redlining view it as a way to keep the black from owning homes.…
Social Inequality happens when an individual or a group within a society has unequal rights to social commodities such as power, wealth, education and opportunity. The book defines Inequality as "the degree to which culturally valued material and social rewards are given disproportionately to individuals, families and other kinds of groups". Each culture has a different expression of inequality. Morton Fried, a Professor of Anthropology in the 1960's, proposed that there exists three kinds main kinds of inequalities across most cultures: Egalitarian, Ranked and Stratified.…
Differences, whether real or perceived, have a direct effect on inequality. Inequality in society can be seen as a lack of balance between people in the form of wealth distribution, opportunities available and other resources which are shared within a society. You can also find inequalities for the disabled in gaining access to public transport, shops doors and pavements/sidewalks.…
Social equality requires the absence of discrimination against a person’s identity. The way people behave socially through discrimination, affects the opportunities individuals can create for themselves. People are sometimes considered disadvantaged, or non-important, due to their life circumstances. This belief is mostly caused by unequal accumulation of wealth. Keeping men and women from obtaining the same social goods.…
In modern societies the boundaries between the functionalist theory and the conflict theory are less clearly defined than in the times of Karl Marx and Emile Durkheim. However the main class groups such as landowners and the working class can still be identified in most societies. It seems to me that I would be more of a functionalist rather than a conflict theorist.…